Death in Biological News

Protein that promotes cancer cell growth identified

... to play a major role in promoting programmed cell death (apoptosis), helps relay signals that can cause ... in response to activation of the so-called death receptors on the outside of cells," said Darren ... division and reduced cell death. A number of cell death proteins are missing from human tumors, allowing ...

Tips from the journals of the American Society for Microbiology

... more weight and were faster to succumb to death than wild-type mice. Both the HK/483 and H/K 486 ... peptide identified as L5 may prevent death in mice suffering from life-threatening bacterial ... of L5 and observed for its ability to prevent death when challenged with lethal bacterial infections. ...

Scientists explain how 'death receptors' designed to kill our cells may make them stronger

... to cancer. "Increasing our knowledge of how death receptors function will allow us to develop ... the various molecular pathways activated by death receptors and the proteins involved in the ... other and how they redistribute within a cell. death receptors are an essential tool for the immune ...

Comprehensive cardiogenetic testing for families of sudden unexplained death victims can save lives

... in over 30% of the families of sudden unexplained death (SUD) victims, the majority of such relatives ... reveal a cause of death. The average age at death of the SUD victims was only 29.8 years old. ... department because of unexplained sudden death of a relative aged 1-50 years. The scientists ...

Cell's split personality is a major discovery into neurological diseases

... also play an active and major role in the death of neurons in the eye. The findings, published ... pathway leading to glutamate-induced nerve cell death involves another vital player namely, glial ... that allows them to induce or exacerbate neuronal death in pathological conditions. "Neuronal ...

Tree survival skills

... can mean the difference between survival and death for trees. For starters, when ... can add up to significant trauma, shock, and even death for these vulnerable trees. Although any one ... stress factors may be the sole cause of a tree's death or decline, it is more likely a combination of ...

Single gene defect can cause stroke, other artery diseases

... undergo surgical approaches to prevent premature death or disability," said senior author and principal ... type of heart disease, is the leading cause of death for both men and women in the United States. Stroke is the third leading cause of death in the country. In the study, none of the ...

Sugar on bacteria surface serves as base for a web of resistance

... infection with these bacteria is what causes the death of most patients with cystic fibrosis, a genetic ... lead to sepsis or bacteremia, common causes of death in very sick intensive-care patients. With ... said. The researchers believe this cell death disrupts the matrix holding the existing biofilm ...

Caffeine appears to be beneficial in males -- but not females -- with Lou Gehrig's disease

... paralysis of voluntary muscles and often death within five years of symptoms. Although ALS (Lou ... oxidative stress and its associated cell death mechanisms. A New Study A new study ... antioxidant enzyme protein content and cell death in male and female mice models of ALS. The ...

Caffeine appears to be beneficial in males -- but not females -- with Lou Gehrig's disease

... paralysis of voluntary muscles and often death within five years of symptoms. Although ALS (Lou ... oxidative stress and its associated cell death mechanisms. A New Study A new study ... antioxidant enzyme protein content and cell death in male and female mice models of ALS. The ...

Alzheimer cell death in Zebrafish: Demise of neurons observed live for the first time

... Extensive death of nerve cells leads to severe dementia in ... developed characteristic symptoms such as the death of neurons the first directly observable ... therapies is sorely needed, since neuronal cell death in the brains of Alzheimer's patients can still ...

Scots and Irish at greater risk of drink-related death, study shows

... and Wales had similar rates of alcohol-related death as Scottish- and Irish-born people. The ... of alcohol-related deaths. The higher rate of death from liver cancer could be attributable to the ... "These findings show significant differences in death rates by country of birth for both ...

Young dinosaurs roamed together, died together

... A herd of young birdlike dinosaurs met their death on the muddy margins of a lake some 90 million ... in western Inner Mongolia. The Sudden sudden death of the herd in a mud trap provides a rare ... the animals died. "These animals died a slow death in a mud trap, their flailing only serving to ...

Cellular discovery may lead to targeted treatment for rare form of anemia

... that makes the red blood cells prone to cell death before they mature. Red blood cells travel ... model, Thomas' team was able to explain how cell death occurs in DBA and identified a specific step in ... to abnormal activation of p53, causing premature death of red blood cells. P53 is a protein that ...

Promising 3-year data: Saving limbs with drug-eluting stents

... of atherosclerotic disease, leading to tissue death (gangrene) and amputation. Interventional ... it means he or she is at great risk for tissue death due to lack of blood flow, which carries oxygen ... and sores and wounds that will not heal. Tissue death (gangrene) and amputation are imminent at this ...

Parkinson's Disease Foundation awards $300,000 in bridge funding for innovative research projects

... clumping is believed to contribute to the cell death that leads to Parkinson's. Their team will test ... by an immune response, plays in causing the death of neurons in Parkinson's. Scientists already ... share a common mechanism that contributes to the death of neurons. He hypothesizes that this mechanism ...

Shorter wait means longer life for kidney transplant candidates

... past performance of a center in terms of patient death rates, proportion of non-ideal donors and number ... with the longest wait times, patients' risk of death was a third higher than at those with the ... clinical measurements, had a slight elevation in death rates. Past center performance, in terms of ...

Sudden cardiac death without recognizable cause

... In about 10% of cases, sudden cardiac death (SCD) in young people is due to a cardiac gene ... Int 2009; 106(4): 41-7). Sudden cardiac death is defined as unexpected death occurring rapidlyusually within 1 h of the onset ...

Consumers desire more genetic testing, but not designer babies

... disease, dwarfism and shortened lifespan from death by 5 years of age. Consumers, however, are less ... choose testing for a condition that resulted in death by 5 years of age, whereas even less parents ... choose testing for conditions that results in death by 20, 40, and 50 years of age, respectively. ...

Tree deaths have doubled across the western US

... Tree death rates have more than doubled over the last few ... increase in dying trees has been pervasive. Tree death rates have increased across a wide variety of ... trees. Regardless of the cause, higher tree death rates ultimately could lead to substantial ...

'Stroke Belt' deaths tied to non-traditional risk factors

... the sole reasons behind the South's higher stroke death rate. The data is from UAB's Reasons for ... confirms a greater-than 40 percent higher stroke death rate in eight southeastern states known as the ... face a significantly higher risk for stroke and death from stroke compared to whites, and research is ...

Burnham researchers discover 'on switch' for cell death signaling mechanism

... between proteins that form the heart of the death inducing signaling complex (DISC), which is ... between Fas receptor and Fas-associated death domain protein (FADD) mechanistically control ... The X-ray crystal structure of the Fas-FADD death domain complex revealed a particular arrangement ...

Shared survival mechanism explains why 'good' nerve cells last and 'bad' cancer cells flourish

... comes to cancer. "In neurons, inhibiting cell death is physiologically important to ensuring their ... Cancer Center. "In cancer cells, blocking cell death allows them to evade the host defense systems and ... of a key protein involved in the process of cell death called cytochrome c. "What we show is that both ...

Progression of retinal disease linked to cell starvation

... "This is the first study linking cone death in Retinitis Pigmentosa to a metabolic problem ... He discovered an interesting pattern. Cone death always began after the major phase of rod death. ... after this point in each strain. During the cone death phase, 230 genes were always expressed at higher ...

Mitochondria could be a target for therapeutic strategy for Alzheimer's disease patients

... of a critical molecule involved in cell death in Alzheimer's disease patients. These new ... pore (mPTP), an opening that leads to cell death for those with Alzheimer's. Mitochondrial ... outer membrane rupture and release of cell death mediators and enhances production of reactive ...

Swamping bad cells with good in ALS animal models helps sustain breathing

... from diaphragm weakness is the usual cause of death in ALS, also called Lou Gehrig's disease. ... its nerve's ability to function and stave off death significantly longer," says neuroscientist ... he says, "since we knew that, as in ALS, their death results in respiratory decline." Also ...

Where optics meets medicine

... capillaries, which in turn could cause the death of neurons. These findings suggest that small ... these plaques are the cause of the neuronal death that occurs in Alzheimer's or just a by-product ... cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer death in the United States; 95 percent of all patients ...

Key component of debilitating lung disease identified

... Americans and is the fourth highest cause of death in the United States," said Robert Wise, MD, ... is the only disease among the top 10 causes of death with a rising mortality rate in the United States. It is predicted to be the third largest cause of death by 2020 and has already reached worldwide ...

Oxidative stress: Mechanism of cell death clarified

... agent GSH in the metabolic pathway of cell death triggered by oxidative stress, mice and cells ... biosynthesis. Interestingly enough, this cell death could be completely prevented by Vitamin E, but ... Since the oxidation of fatty acids in this cell death pathway, was of paramount importance, multiple ...

Ivory poaching at critical levels: Elephants on path to extinction by 2020?

... of the giant mammals' plight. The elephant death rate from poaching throughout Africa is about 8 ... is actually higher than the 7.4 percent annual death rate that led to the international ivory trade ... a UW biology professor. But the poaching death rate in the late 1980s was based on a population ...

Mitochondrial cholesterol makes response to chemotherapy difficult in hepatic cancer

... the mitochondrion and its role in programmed cell death or apoptosis. The mitochondrion is the organelle ... role in the mitochondrial regulation of cellular death and resistance to chemotherapy was not known. ... molecules into the cell and then initiate cell death mechanisms. This process requires an appropriate ...

LSUHSC awarded $10M+ COBRE grant

... is the #1 killer in America, with an average death of one death every 36 seconds. Cardiovascular disease claims ... the United States. In almost half of these cases, death follows within a year. "In addition to the ...

Mouse model developed at UT Southwestern mimics hyperglycemia, aids in diabetes research

... die from working overtime. After inducing death in the beta cells which make and release the ... Diabetes. "The ability to induce cell death is not novel. The fact that the beta cells ... critical factors that protect against beta cell death and to potentially find ways to increase these ...

New study casts further doubt on risk of death from higher salt intake

... observed a significantly increased risk of death from cardiovascular disease (CVD) associated with ... adults. These data were then compared against death records that had been collected by the government ... the highest level of sodium. The risk for death from any cause appeared 24% greater for those ...

Sudden Oak Death pathogen is evolving, says new study that reconstructs the epidemic

... - The pathogen responsible for Sudden Oak death first got its grip in California's forests ... paper, we actually reconstruct the Sudden Oak death epidemic," said Matteo Garbelotto, UC Berkeley ... plants between different regions where Sudden Oak death is established should be minimized, said ...

Stopping unwanted cell death: Implications for drug discovery

... reveals that three specific inhibitors of a cell death pathway, termed necroptosis, all target and ... a heart attack or stroke, this form of necrotic death can result in tissue damage contributing to death or long-term disability. The findings present a ...

Playing dead is no game for ant survival

... a Springer publication. Feigning death is a method of self-defense used by a wide range ... by predators. Cassill and colleagues studied the death feigning behavior of the highly territorial fire ... authors offer two possible explanations for the death feigning behavior of the young fire ants. The ...

'Death protein' research secures funding for UCF scientists

... is conducting research into what triggers the death protein. The death protein BAX appears to annihilate surrounding ... that leads to the fragmentation and ultimately death of the cells of the immune system, Khaled hopes ...

Methadone even at therapeutic levels can kill

... Methadone is a possible cause of sudden cardiac death even when it isnt overdosed but is taken at ... this drug toward the occurrence of sudden cardiac death among these patients, said Sumeet Chugh, M.D., ... into ventricular fibrillation leading to sudden death in the absence of medical intervention. The ...

The birth and death of dopamine neurons: A new model for neurodegeneration

... FOXA2 plays a central role in the birth and death of dopamine neurons in the midbrain. By defining ... of dopamine neurons. This spontaneous cell death preferentially affects neurons associated with ... neurons in the laboratory and to block their death in old age. ...